Reid
Hasnt Seen Dirt in Years
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2005
- Location
- Winston Salem
just picked up a used 8274. I am unfamilar with these winches, so any advice on things to check before i start using it, or helpful hints and tips would be great.
Warn 8274
- Thread starter Reid
- Start date
mbalbritton
#@$%!
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2005
- Location
- Lakeland, FL
Red is positive, black is ground/negative.
Reid
Hasnt Seen Dirt in Years
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2005
- Location
- Winston Salem
lol, solid advice.
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2005
- Location
- Raleigh, NC
Well... first off, what kind of condition is it in? Does it power in and out? Does the brake work? Freespool clutch? Is it leaking oil? Does it actually have oil in it? How old is it? That'll figure in to what "kind" of 8274 it is.... which motor, which style brake, etc.
They are stupid easy to work on. I just picked one up a few months ago that was a little bit of a mess. Threw it on the Jeep the first time and spooled the cable only to find out that the oil seals were bad and the brake was sticking. Pulled it completely apart and found about 1" of sludge in the bottom of the case. New seals, new power leads, new contactor (forget about solenoids), new oil and a decent cleaning, and it's ready to go another 25 years.
They are stupid easy to work on. I just picked one up a few months ago that was a little bit of a mess. Threw it on the Jeep the first time and spooled the cable only to find out that the oil seals were bad and the brake was sticking. Pulled it completely apart and found about 1" of sludge in the bottom of the case. New seals, new power leads, new contactor (forget about solenoids), new oil and a decent cleaning, and it's ready to go another 25 years.
Reid
Hasnt Seen Dirt in Years
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2005
- Location
- Winston Salem
Thanks Shawn, thats what i figured. Best bet is to just pull it apart, inspect and replace as necessary and clean everything then eh? Just replace like for like, or is there any upgrade parts that would be beneficial while ive got it apart?
As far as condition, its been on the back of a roll back for who knows how long. Ive not even put power to it, or tried to free spool. thoguht id gather as much info as i could before i went to messing with it.
As far as condition, its been on the back of a roll back for who knows how long. Ive not even put power to it, or tried to free spool. thoguht id gather as much info as i could before i went to messing with it.
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2005
- Location
- Raleigh, NC
Right. The bushings and seals for the spool come together as a kit. Less than $20 IIRC for everything. There's not a lot that can go wrong with the brake, assuming it's clean and the friction material is still there.
Keep in mind that the brake needs several hundred pounds of line pressure to engage, so it's not something you can test by hand. The more pressure that's on the line, the harder it grabs. Pretty nice design, really.
One thing to keep in mind is that you want to make sure that the end plate is square with the gearbox when you install it. A lot of people complain that the 8274 doesn't freespool well (or at all). That's due to one of two things: either the freespool lever is gummed up with crap and won't disengage, or the spool is bound up against the endplate because the whole thing wasn't installed very well on the vehicle.
Three big upgrades come immediately to mind: upgrading older models (Prestolite 2.2 hp and Bosch 2.5 hp motors) to the 8274-50 4.6 hp motor, changing out the solenoids for a contactor (I used the $100 Superwinch one, the Warn one is $275), and replacing the steel cable with a rope. The motor on mine works well enough for now. I'll wait until it gives out before dropping the cash on a 4.6hp motor. The *old* ones used a coarse thread spline on the motor, so you may have to replace the gear at the motor depending on how old yours is. Mine is from the early 80s and has the correct gear.
But really, the sky is the limit. There's a UK company (Gigglepin, I think) making dual motor gearboxes for them and disc brake conversions. A lot of that is the staged expedition competition stuff they do over there. Some guys are putting the 9.5xp 6hp motor on them. I decided against that because of the risk of breaking gears.
The only thing that's a PITA about them is putting the ball bearings back in the brake. There are... 15?? loose ball bearings in the brake, and they're in front of a spring-loaded plate. So be careful taking the brake snap ring and gear plate off. I was able to set the case on the bench, lay all the bearings in the groove where they were supposed to be, then gently press everything together and get the snap ring back on. If that didn't work, I was going to put rare earth magnets around the outside of the brake to hold the bearings in place while I put it back together.
There are a couple of write-ups on tearing them down, I think one on PBB and one on IH8Mud.
Keep in mind that the brake needs several hundred pounds of line pressure to engage, so it's not something you can test by hand. The more pressure that's on the line, the harder it grabs. Pretty nice design, really.
One thing to keep in mind is that you want to make sure that the end plate is square with the gearbox when you install it. A lot of people complain that the 8274 doesn't freespool well (or at all). That's due to one of two things: either the freespool lever is gummed up with crap and won't disengage, or the spool is bound up against the endplate because the whole thing wasn't installed very well on the vehicle.
Three big upgrades come immediately to mind: upgrading older models (Prestolite 2.2 hp and Bosch 2.5 hp motors) to the 8274-50 4.6 hp motor, changing out the solenoids for a contactor (I used the $100 Superwinch one, the Warn one is $275), and replacing the steel cable with a rope. The motor on mine works well enough for now. I'll wait until it gives out before dropping the cash on a 4.6hp motor. The *old* ones used a coarse thread spline on the motor, so you may have to replace the gear at the motor depending on how old yours is. Mine is from the early 80s and has the correct gear.
But really, the sky is the limit. There's a UK company (Gigglepin, I think) making dual motor gearboxes for them and disc brake conversions. A lot of that is the staged expedition competition stuff they do over there. Some guys are putting the 9.5xp 6hp motor on them. I decided against that because of the risk of breaking gears.
The only thing that's a PITA about them is putting the ball bearings back in the brake. There are... 15?? loose ball bearings in the brake, and they're in front of a spring-loaded plate. So be careful taking the brake snap ring and gear plate off. I was able to set the case on the bench, lay all the bearings in the groove where they were supposed to be, then gently press everything together and get the snap ring back on. If that didn't work, I was going to put rare earth magnets around the outside of the brake to hold the bearings in place while I put it back together.
There are a couple of write-ups on tearing them down, I think one on PBB and one on IH8Mud.
Rich
Asshole at large
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2005
- Location
- Central PA
Shawn nailed all the key points on that one.. Its a great winch. Last one you'll ever need.
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Reid
Hasnt Seen Dirt in Years
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2005
- Location
- Winston Salem
excellent info. lol, its always nice to know about loose ball bearings BEFORE they are rolling all over the floor.
lockedup5
overcompensating underachiever
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2008
- Location
- Burke County (Hildebran)
Don't over fill with oil. I think they only take 6 oz. of 30w non-detergent like was said before.